The Stars Above
by Davner
Summary: Putting the pieces back together can be hard sometimes.


Tenchi Muyo is the property of AIC and Pioneer.  
  
This is another fic in my "Lost Fics" series. As usual, let me know what you think.  
  
  
  
The Stars Above  
  
  
  
"It's been twenty years. I'm sorry, Misaki, but it's her *duty* to produce a royal heir. I know she still feels the loss, but I'm afraid the time has come to *force* her to make a decision."  
  
Misaki Stovakar Jurai, Second Queen of Jurai, glared at her husband. "'Force' her?" she asked bitterly. "'FORCE' HER!?"  
  
Azusa would not allow himself to be cowed. "Yes," he said.  
  
"You can't force her to marry someone! You tried that before with Seiryo!"  
  
"I was mistaken with Seiryo," Azusa told her. He sighed. "I made a mistake and assumed that Aeka would be willing to make as great a sacrifice as that. I was wrong. I'm not suggesting we repeat past mistakes. I am suggesting that we give her a kick in the backside for her own good!"  
  
Misaki said nothing.  
  
"Or would you prefer she die childless and alone over a man as pathetic as Tenchi Masaki?"  
  
This drove the point straight home. Misaki took a thoughtful breath and chewed on her bottom lip. Ever since Tenchi had made his decision twenty years ago, Aeka had suffered for it. Insisting that she didn't need anyone, she had thrown herself into her duties, living a life dedicated to her kingdom, but not much else.  
  
She sighed.  
  
"You know I'm right," Azusa told her.  
  
"Sister," Funaho began from across the dining room table, "I believe this time Azusa is right."  
  
Misaki sighed. "Very well, but I will *not* force her."  
  
"I'm open to suggestions," Azusa told her.  
  
Misaki smiled. "I think I have an idea."  
  
"PULL!"  
  
An orange, clay pigeon streaked into the sky, arcing high above the ocean...  
  
Before detonating in a tremendous explosion!  
  
"Yea!" a little girl standing on the beach cried out.  
  
The man standing next to her broke the antimatter gun and ejected the two rounds he had used to bring down the pigeon.  
  
"Do it again, Daddy!"  
  
"All right, Little One, just let me rel..." Davner nos Mollidon broke off as he saw another man approaching. "Afternoon, Vazner," he spoke up. "What brings you out he'yah?"  
  
"Uncle Vazner!" The little girl ran up to the man and hugged him.  
  
The blonde man smiled and hugged his niece. "Hey there, little Risa!" He picked the girl up and swung her around. "Whatcha do'in out here, huh?"  
  
Risa giggled. "Daddy's blowing up pigeons!"  
  
"Sounds like fun."  
  
Davner smiled as reloaded the rifle. "Care for a shot?" he asked his older brother.  
  
"No, thanks, Dav. I just came to say goodbye."  
  
"Where are you going, Uncle Vazner?" Risa asked sadly.  
  
"I'm going to Jurai, Little One," Vazner told her.  
  
"That summit thing?" Davner asked. He raised the gun to his shoulder. "PULL!"  
  
The automatic launcher flung a pigeon into the air. Davner tracked it for a moment, then squeezed the trigger. The pigeon exploded as the anti-matter slug struck it. Risa cheered.  
  
"Yeah," Vazner told him. "Zander's too busy, and I doubt you'd want to go..." He grinned.  
  
Davner shuddered. "Jurains," he muttered. "Uptight buncha cocksures... Never really liked them."  
  
Vazner smiled. "I'll admit, they're more...traditional...than other races..."  
  
Davner smiled. "Please!" he scoffed. "I hear tell they have to get permission from their Emperor before they're even allowed to piss!"  
  
Risa giggled. "Daddy said a funny word!"  
  
"Don't you go repeat'n that, Little One," Davner warned.  
  
"I won't!" Risa giggled.  
  
"How long you think you'll be gone?" Davner asked him.  
  
Vazner sighed. "Don't know. Things aren't exactly peachy between us and the Jurains right now. I have no idea really."  
  
"The cocksures are just pissed because we won't fall into line and side with them in that whole Orsini mess," Davner told him reloading the gun. "You're not going to waver on that, right?"  
  
"Certainly not!" Vazner told him. "It'd take more than Jurain hospitality to make me turn on Morrin."  
  
Davner smiled. "Well, then," he drawled, "You have nothing to worry about." He stuck out his hand.  
  
Vazner smiled and shook it. "Seeya in a few weeks, Dav."  
  
"Davner! Risa!" a woman's voice called out from farther up the shore.  
  
"Uh oh, looks like your mother wants us," the Fourth Prince told his daughter.  
  
Risa hugged Vazner. "Bye, Uncle Vazner!"  
  
"Bye, Little One." He saw the miserable look on Risa's face and smiled. "I'll bring you back something, okay? Maybe one of those Jurain kimonos. How'd that be?"  
  
Risa brightened and nodded enthusiastically.  
  
The Second Prince of Mollidon watched as his brother and niece walked down the beach together. He turned and looked out at the Trelian Sea before him and sighed. The sun was just beginning to go down. Quietly, he said goodbye to his home and started back up to the palace.  
  
"Sasami! Please don't cry! It'll be okay!" Aeka said, hugging her sister...again...  
  
Sasami blew her nose into a handkerchief and continued to sob. "I'm just...It's just...I..." With that little speech, the Second Princess of Jurai began crying again.  
  
Aeka just sighed and continued to hug her sister, careful not to hug too hard due to the noticeable bulge in Sasami's stomach.  
  
"HE'S GOING TO MISS STARTICA!" Sasami wailed.  
  
Aeka sighed for the thousandth time. "At least he's safe," she said quietly. "Thank Tsunami for that."  
  
Sasami sniffled. "Tsunami...Tsunami damn them!" she cried. "Tsunami damn the Orsinians for arresting him! Tsunami damn Jurai for sending him! Tsunami damn *him* for agreeing to go!" she began sobbing again.  
  
Another sigh.  
  
"Sasami, you read the letter," Aeka tried again. "You heard what Miss Todara said. He's not in any danger. They're just holding him..."  
  
"They're holding for the next several weeks!" Sasami shot back bitterly. She sniffled again. "We were going to spend our first holiday together as a married couple..."  
  
Aeka rubbed her temples and tried to think clearly. Usually, Sasami was a bright, optimistic woman, but ever since she had gotten pregnant....  
  
There were days when *Mihoshi* would be preferable.  
  
Damn you, Carvin Kenzaki, Aeka thought bitterly, Sasami's right. You should be *here*. Well, there was no use crying over it now. She was about to try again when a knock came on the door.  
  
Misaki poked her head in without waiting for an answer. "Hello, girls," she said with a smile. "How are..."  
  
"MOMMY!!" Sasami cried, running into Misaki's arms and immediately sobbing into her kimono.  
  
"OH, MY POOR BABY! WHAT IS IT!? WHAT'S WRONG!?"  
  
Aeka sighed and stood up from her seat on Sasami's bed. She held up a datapad and offered it to he mother. "We just got a letter from Carvin."  
  
"Well, that's wonderful!"  
  
"He's on Orsini....Under lock-up..."  
  
"That's bad," Misaki noted.  
  
Sasami continued to wail.  
  
"Miss Todara explained the situation to us. They have no proof of espionage, but they want to hold Carvin for a few weeks while they check out his cover story."  
  
"He's going to...*Sob*...miss STARTICA!" Sasami wailed into her mother's kimono.  
  
"There, there, my little princess!" Misaki cooed, hugging Sasami. "I'm sure things will work out."  
  
Azusa and Funaho appeared at the door. "Aeka," Funaho began, "We'd like to talk to you."  
  
"Of course, Aunt Funaho," Aeka said in genuine happiness. She loved her sister to death, but she needed a break. Aeka mentally shook her head.  
  
Aeka followed them into the hallway, leaving Sasami to Misaki's care. The First Princess followed her father and aunt into the palace garden and waited for them to begin. As she passed one of the reflecting pools, she looked down and regarded her image there. She was still as beautiful as she ever was. She didn't look a day over twenty, despite the fact that she was several centuries older than that.  
  
"Aeka," Funaho began. Aeka looked up quickly. "We have a favor to ask of you."  
  
"Of course. Anything."  
  
"There's a summit meeting coming up," Azusa told her. "One of the Mollidoni princes is coming here for the usual political talks. I was wondering if you'd agree to show him around."  
  
"Me?" Aeka asked, blinking in surprise. "Why me?"  
  
Azusa and Funaho looked to one another for an answer. Finally, it was Azusa who spoke up. "You know how the Mollidoni are," he said as if that explained everything. "They're easier to negotiate with if they think you're flattering them. And what could be more flattering than having the First Princess as a personal guide?"  
  
Aeka blinked. That didn't make much sense at all...  
  
Funaho tried. "Think of it as a way to make the talks...less formal..." she said.  
  
Aeka watched as both monarchs began to sweat.  
  
Azusa took a breath and frowned. "You'll show the Prince of Mollidon around the city and that's final!" he said.  
  
Aeka blinked. "Er...Yes, Father."  
  
They smiled. "Good. He'll arrive tomorrow. You'll act as his liason to the Royal House. Understood?"  
  
"Yes, Father."  
  
"Good. Thank you, Aeka." Azusa and Funaho started past her. Funaho stopped and gave her a quick hug before leaving a very confused Aeka alone in the palace garden.  
  
Aeka was walking past the palace kitchen that night when she heard something.  
  
Movement.  
  
She peered into the darkness in search of it. It was past midnight, and the kitchen staff were all asleep by now. She squinted into the darkness and considered calling her Guardians to her. Then again, she could probably handle whatever problem it was. She stepped inside and reached out, hitting the light switch!  
  
Sasami stood there next to one of the palace refrigerators. Her arms were overloaded with groceries of every kind, and a bag of bread hung from her mouth. She was looking at Aeka in shock.  
  
"Sasami?" Aeka said, blinking.  
  
"Avvayga?" Sasami mumbled through the bag in her teeth. She readjusted her grip and removed the bag. "Aeka?" she repeated.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Aeka asked her.  
  
"Um...Just getting a light snack," Sasami told her sister with a nervous smile.  
  
Aeka looked at the amount of groceries in Sasami's arms and blinked. "A *light* snack?"  
  
Sasami placed the groceries on a table with a "Hmmph!" She began cutting the bread open in preparation to make a sandwich. "So I have cravings," she said, not facing Aeka. "So what? I'm eating for two people now..." She paused. "And I miss Carvin..." She resumed creating her snack. "So I figure I can lie awake in my room and mope or come down here and at least get something to eat."  
  
"I'm sorry, Sasami. I didn't mean it the way it sounded," Aeka apologized.  
  
Sasami sighed. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't snap like that."  
  
Aeka smiled a little. "Can I have a sandwich too?"  
  
Sasami giggled and cut another section of bread. "Coming right up." Aeka's smile broadened. Ever since Sasami had moved out of the royal palace, Aeka had missed her...and her cooking. When she got pregnant, and Carvin had been placed on another assignment for the SIS, her mother had insisted that Sasami return home and stay with them at least until Carvin returned.  
  
Aeka sat at the table across from Sasami and watched as Sasami began making the sandwiches. "Sasami, did Mother say anything about me today after Father, Aunt Funaho, and I left?"  
  
Sasami paused for a moment. "No. Why?"  
  
Aeka shook her head. "I just have the strangest feeling that I'm being set up somehow. My birthday isn't for months, so it's not a surprise party or anything..." She arched an eyebrow as Sasami added fresh sardines to both sandwiches. "Um...Do you have any ideas?" she asked, overlooking it.  
  
"Hmmmm," Sasami thought, pouring some rice onto the sandwiches. "What did Father say?"  
  
"He wants me to play tourguide to some prince who's arriving tomorrow," Aeka replied. "I don't know. It's just the way they asked. It's got me worried."  
  
"Is that why you're still up?" Sasami asked her.  
  
Aeka nodded. "It's just a feeling..."  
  
*BLUUURRRRRPPPP!*  
  
Aeka looked up and saw the source of the noise. Sasami was squeezing a bottle of chocolate sauce over the sandwiches, covering them in the viscous liquid. Aeka began to sweat nervously.  
  
"Why me?" she asked. "What do I know about the Mollidoni?"  
  
"Well," Sasami said, "I've been there once, and Carvin's been there a few times. I could tell you what I remember."  
  
Aeka blinked and nodded. "All right."  
  
"Chocolate or vanilla?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Sasami blinked at Aeka, an ice cream scoop in one hand and a tub of ice cream in the other. "On your sandwich," she elaborated.  
  
Aeka gulped nervously. "Vanilla..."  
  
Sasami began scooping as she spoke. "The Mollidoni are...different," she began. "Despite the fact that we've both sprang from the same genetic backgrounds, our two races have never really been comfortable around one another. They think we're a little stuck up."  
  
Aeka only blinked.  
  
"Let's see, what else?" Sasami asked herself, placing a cherry on top of her sandwich. "They're polytheistic, so they have a pantheon of gods. Tsunami's even in there," she noted with a smile.  
  
"How did that happen?"  
  
Sasami licked the cherry sauce off her fingers before answering. "Anytime the Mollidoni encounter an established god or religion, they incorporate it into the pantheon. They have more than three hundred gods and goddesses, and have never once had a war based on religion."  
  
"Wow."  
  
Sasami nodded, then grinned conspiritorially. "You know who else is in there?" Aeka shook her head. Sasami leaned forward and whispered. "Washu."  
  
"Washu?!"  
  
Sasami giggled and nodded. "What did they call her again?" she asked herself. "The Goddess of Eternal Knowledge, or something like that."  
  
"Knowing Washu, she probably built a time machine, went back to their prehistory, showed them some fireworks, and demanded to be made a goddess," Aeka said with a smile.  
  
Sasami giggled and sat down at the table across from Aeka. "I wouldn't put it past her." She pushed a plate with Aeka's sandwich across the table, then began eating her own.  
  
Aeka looked down at the sandwich, then up at Sasami, who seemed to be thoroughly enjoying her own messy, culinary monstrosity. Her eyes wandered down to Sasami's distended belly, and she sighed.  
  
"I wish I could enjoy it," she whispered.  
  
Sasami blinked. "Don't like the sandwich?"  
  
"Sorry, I'm not hungry all of a sudden," Aeka muttered.  
  
"Aeka, can I ask you something?"  
  
Aeka nodded.  
  
"Why don't you have a family of your own yet?"  
  
Aeka looked at her for a moment before standing up and starting toward the door. "I don't want to talk about this," she said quickly.  
  
Sasami's voice stopped her. "He's not the only good man out there!" she called out.  
  
Aeka stopped in her tracks. "He is for me," she said, not turning to face her sister.  
  
Sasami sighed. "What did he ever do that was *that* special?" she asked. "Aeka...What could he have done...to make you *want* to spend the rest of your life alone?"  
  
"He cared," Aeka whispered. She balled her hands into fists, but still wouldn't face her sister. "I loved him," she whispered. "Don't you understand?" she begged. "I *loved* him. More than anything in this universe. I loved him and I knew, I *knew* he loved me too. Then...then he went and picked *her* over me, and I...." She broke off. "He was the only thing I ever wanted out of life," she finished.  
  
"There are others, Aeka," Sasami told her. "Why can't you see that?"  
  
"I've looked, Sasami!" Aeka cried, whirling around to face her sister for the first time.  
  
"No, you haven't!" Sasami shot back. Aeka blinked in shock. "You sat in this palace and convinced yourself that looking would do no good!"  
  
Aeka said nothing.  
  
"Is this how you really want to live, Aeka?" Sasami asked.  
  
Without another word, Aeka turned on her heel and marched out the door. Sasami sighed and watched her go.  
  
Aeka adjusted her tiara and scratched at the neckline of her ornate kimono before taking another breath as she waited. The Jurai Royal Spaceport was usually crowded at this time of day, but Aeka had called ahead and asked to have the private wing cordoned off until the prince's shuttle arrived. On either side of her, two Jurain Knights, arrayed in their finest raiment, stood at attention.  
  
She looked up at the clock on the wall of the terminal and bit her lip. His shuttle should have landed five minutes ago...  
  
Another five minutes passed. Aeka was tapping her foot impatiently. She saw a passing porter and waved him over. The man kneeled before her, and she quickly waved him to stand up.  
  
"Excuse me, but do you know why the Mollidoni Royal Shuttle's been delayed?"  
  
The porter blinked in confusion. "Um...There's no royal shuttle scheduled for today, Your Highness."  
  
Aeka looked at him quizzically. "I was told the Prince of Mollidon was arriving today..."  
  
The porter took out a handheld computer and checked the manifests. He nodded. "Yes, Your Highness, but he's not coming in on a private shuttle. He caught a connecting flight from Orsini, and it just landed ten minutes ago."  
  
"HE'S AT A DIFFERENT GATE?!"  
  
"Um...Yes, Your Highness."  
  
"Which one?!"  
  
"Um..." The porter checked his computer again. "Gate Five, Your Highness."  
  
Aeka began running towards the other wing of the spaceport. So far, her first real diplomatic mission wasn't on the right foot. She arrived at Gate Five to find people milling about, greeting loved ones, and trying to orient themselves after their flight.  
  
She searched the crowd and saw a tall man with short, blonde hair walking toward her with a suitcase in each hand. He wore a simple, light grey jacket and slacks. Aeka ignored him...  
  
Right up until he stopped in front of her.  
  
"Princess Aeka?" he asked.  
  
She blinked. "Yes?"  
  
The man smiled and put his suitcases down. "Pleased to meet ya, Your Highness," he said, offering a traditional Mollidoni bow, bent over at the waist with his left arm folded over his chest, and his right arm in the air.  
  
"You're..."  
  
The man smiled. "Vazner Destias nos Mollidon," he told her. Aeka's mouth opened in shock at the simply dressed man. How could he be....  
  
"Second Prince of the Sovereign Kingdom of Mollidon and her Glorious Confederation," he finished.  
  
Misaki looked up as Aeka entered her private chambers and quickly shut the door behind her. The princess turned to her mother and leaned against the door, taking a deep breath of exhaustion.  
  
"So, Hon," Misaki began with a smile. "How's your first, real life diplomatic mission?"  
  
"I want out," Aeka told her.  
  
Misaki blinked. "But why?"  
  
"Because!" Aeka cried. She sighed and sat down across the table from her mother. "The man is...is...*intolerable*!"  
  
Misaki smiled. "Oh?"  
  
"Yes!" She gave her mother a pleading look. "I met him at the space port this morning, prepared to meet a...a...a *PRINCE*, and instead I get a bum!"  
  
"A 'bum?'" the Queen asked.  
  
"Yes! A bum!" Aeka repeated. "He asked me if we could forgo going through customs!"  
  
"So?"  
  
"Well, at first I just thought he wanted to skip any delays and get right to work, but it turned out he just wanted to sneak in some Orsinian ale he smuggled onto the shuttle!"  
  
"Oooh! Orsinian ale?!" Misaki's eyes lit up. "I trust you got a bottle as part of the deal..."  
  
"MOTHER!" Aeka cried. "He smuggled in contraband and had me help him do it!"  
  
"Yes, Dearest One, I heard you the first time, but did you get a bottle for us, is the question..."  
  
Aeka looked at her mother in shock.  
  
"Orsinian Ale is a wonderful drink, Aeka!" Misaki defended herself. "And thanks to the...current unpleasantness...it's *very* difficult to find!"  
  
Aeka began rubbing her temples.  
  
"Anyway, what about the rest of the day?"  
  
The princess looked up at her. "Don't ask."  
  
"Oh dear..."  
  
"Mother...please...Isn't there something else I can do?"  
  
"Well...No. I'm sorry, Aeka, but we need you to do this."  
  
Aeka sighed.  
  
"Where is he now?" Misaki asked.  
  
"Settling in..."  
  
"Awwww...My poor baby..." Misaki cooed. "You should consider yourself lucky, though," she said with a smile. "I hear the Fourth Prince is even worse."  
  
Aeka sighed.  
  
"You'd better go find him." 


End file.
